Reviews - The Oedipus Plays of Sophocles: Oedipus the King; Oedipus at Colonus; Antigone

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550 reviews for:

The Oedipus Plays of Sophocles: Oedipus the King; Oedipus at Colonus; Antigone

Sophocles

3.87 AVERAGE

rohinipk's review against another edition

3.0

dark tense fast-paced

lost_goddess's review against another edition

2.0

I forgot what a whiny bitch Oedipus was. He's impulsive, immature, and doesn't take responsibility for his actions. The translation was good, but the story suffers from suffering.

jkwriting24's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

hummuslover54's review against another edition

2.75

dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

sweetearlgrey's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

The explainer sections in this version were much appreciated as they helped me to better understand the historical context of much of what was happening in the plays.

annaguline's review against another edition

4.25

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

erinriker's review against another edition

5.0

This Robert Fagles translation is beautiful--far superior to other versions I've read (Fitts/Fitzgerald or David Greene's, for instance). The language is vibrant and compelling, an important asset for reading drama on the page. If you've not read Sophocles since a forced-and-indifferent slog during high school, I'd encourage you to rediscover it in a better light with this translation. Highly recommended.

This was my first time reading all three "Oedipus plays" in succession, and I appreciated that this volume presents them chronologically by Sophocles' date of composition rather than sequentially according to their place in the Theban myth. It's helpful to think of the three plays not as a "trilogy," but rather three separate tellings of the myth. This is how the Greek audiences would have seen them, and this arrangement also serves to better highlight Sophocles' development as a playwright.

The introductory essays by Bernard Knox are also a joy to read for those who are interested, but they're by no means a requirement for the general reader. The plays will stand on their own merit, with or without the introductory material. (At the very least, though, I'd suggest reading the brief summary of the Theban myths on pp. 27-29 for background if you're not already familiar with the story.)